I think it's time we took a little tour around my new studio, don't you think? I've been working here every week for a little over a month now, so it's starting to come together. Here's what you see when you walk in the door (that adorable hand-embroidered sign was a birthday gift from my friend Karen, by the way):

I love the ceiling in the front room! It's perfect for my Tsuru fabric bunting.

I'm still trying to figure out exactly what to do with the walls -- I might hang up samples of kids' clothes I made, kind of like in my old sewing room. I'm not sure I ever blogged about that room, but you can see a picture of it in a post from Pink Chalk Studio's "Where I Sew" Series from earlier this summer. I LOVE that series because you get to peek inside other people's sewing spaces, which totally appeals to the voyeur in all of us, don't you think? Here's my post if you're interested in seeing it!

The other idea I have for the walls is to frame some of my favorite fabrics and hang them up. But I also like the butterflies, and I don't want it to get too busy in here. As you can see, I'm definitely not a minimalist.

Behold my ridiculous fabric stash. It's embarrassing. I haven't even gotten all of it folded properly since I moved in. OY.

OK, so now let's go into the two side rooms. This is where the sewing happens:

The iron and all my notions and trims are in here, along with what is becoming a rather large library of craft books. And this is the computer/photo room:

I'm typing this post in this room right now, on that computer. My fabric design and photo editing happens in here, and I've got a couple large paper rolls that I hang up to take photos. As you can see I bought some lights too, though with the natural light from the window I don't end up using them much. Here's my Spoonflower color chart. Great wall decoration, right?

So that's about it! I love working here. It's funny: since I moved into a Real Office, I feel like it's somehow made me more legitimate or professional or something, since I'm no longer working out of our guest bedroom. It's like a signal for me that I'm actually managing to make this business thing work. The problem is, it also puts a bit of pressure on me in a way, like I'm supposed to grow really big or get super efficient or hire a bunch of new people (I already have a handful of people working for me, but this week I AM trying to hire a studio assistant) or something. I keep getting the question, "so what are you going to DO with your studio??" which cracks me up a little. Is “I had too much fabric and I was afraid my house was going to explode” a legitimate answer?

Honestly, though, the best thing about getting out of my house is that it's put clear boundaries on when I'm working and when I'm at home. That in itself is a good enough reason for me. I used to wander into my sewing room during the evenings and weekends all the time to sew, but more often to check email or write blog posts, which is not really a great way to relax, you know? So it's good. When I leave the studio, I try to leave my work behind, and that's been really good for me. It allows me to be more present when I'm at home, and relax and have more down-time, which I love. So I'm not ultra-productive? So what? What's the point of doing what you love if you're working yourself to death? Anyway, that's how I see it.

I hope you enjoyed your little tour!!!

Studio tour!!!

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